What To Watch On TV This Weekend: 'Ladies First,' 'Telemarketers,' & 'Painkiller'

It’s both a blessing and a curse that we’ve reached a time where there’s just so much television to experience but so many different places to find it. It makes scrolling across your streamer of choice an inconvenience that doesn’t offer as much of a payoff if you try a show half-heartedly and are disappointed.

That’s where I and some friends step in as a Deus-ex-machina of sorts, a way for you to resolve that inner conflict of what to choose and make sure it’s something worth investing in.

On LAist 89.3’s AirTalk, we bring television critics every week to give you a rundown of those shows that are fresh out of the oven. They’ll serve you a taste of what to expect and from there, you can choose whether or not you want to eat the rest.

Along with that, I’ll add to their topline thoughts and then offer an initial sense I got from the show’s initial episode(s). I may not have TV critic as my title but I got enough knowledge as a fan of film and television to at least give you an informed perspective. And as a member of Gen-Z, I’ll be able to add an extra filter you might get from someone on Twitter but with much less toxicity tied to it.

Sound good? Are you hungry now? Well while you wait for your food to be ready to eat, read through what we got to tell you.

Listen here

This week, AirTalk’s Austin Cross talked about the latest on television and streaming with Eric Deggans, tv critic for NPR, and Roxana Hadadi, tv critic for Vulture, about the latest in television worth checking out.

This week’s shows included:

• Telemarketers (Max)
• Painkiller (Netflix)
• Ladies First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop (Netflix)
• Dark Winds [Season 2] (AMC & AMC+)
• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds [Season 2] (Paramount+)
• Justified: City Primeval (FX & Hulu the next day)

Ladies First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop

Streaming on Netflix

Still of rapper Rapsody during filming of "Women First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop."

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First Impression: To celebrate the 50 years of rap, this new docu-series is meant to encapsulate women who were trailblazers in their craft. Not only focusing on the impact that they had but shining a light on their history and the politics that shaped their musical activism.

Lasting Impression: What’s really cool about this documentary is the fact that it doesn’t try to be completely linear, it certainly has a timeline element but it also does a good job of weaving in the stories of future faces of the rap scene. So you’ll see MC Lyte’s history get showcased, but it’s put together with new folks like Tierra Whack talking about the strength an artist like Lyte gave her to pursue rap.

I should also note— you don’t necessarily need to do any prior research to catch up with the documentary. I knew some of the newer artists quite well (shoutout to Whack and Rapsody) but that was more like icing on my brain (that’s actually just cake).

So enjoy the music, the women MCs who pushed back against the men who attempted to belittle them, and their articulations.

Who's behind it: The creators are Hannah Beachler, Dream Hampton and Raeshem Nijhon. Beachler is an Oscar-award-winning production designer who you likely know from both Black Panther and Wakanda Forever, among some other great films and music videos. Hampton you might recall from her work on the hard-hitting docu-series Surviving R. Kelly. Nijhon had a great series released last fall on Hulu called Hair Tales, which looked into how hair plays a part in the identity of many Black women.

When and where: All four episodes are now streaming on Netflix.

Telemarketers

Streaming on Max

First impression: A firsthand look and exploration of what made the telemarketing boom of the 90s and 2000s– Civic Development Group (CDG). You get firsthand accounts from the people working the phone lines and the straits that put them at the job, as well as the way they passed the time there.

Lasting Impression: This collection of archival moments in office spaces and the absolutely absurd things going on half of the time was entertaining to watch. It shows the crowds telemarketing companies bring together, as well as the constant cycle of taking advantage of people who decided to pick up the phone one day.

Hearing the shady ways they could come up with rebuttals and the lack of background checking, particularly when it was on behalf of the Fraternal Order of Police, shows the extent to which an unchecked economic system treats everyday citizens.

It’s both humorous and disappointing, playing the line perfectly with its storytelling, I’m amazed at just how much material the creators had to work with for this documentary.

Who's behind it: The show’s creators Adam Bhala Lough & Sam Lipman-Stern. One of Lough’s most recent projects was the documentary Alt-Right: Age of Rage, where he looked to tell the differing lives of Antifa activist Daryle Lamont Jenkins and Richard Spencer, one of the faces of the alt-right movement in the United States.

Lipman-Stern is the main face of Telemarketers, telling his own story through footage and connections he made during his time there as a teenager. He also worked on a documentary series called Forbes: Rap Mentor, where he interviewed artists about breaking into the industry.

When and where: Episode 1 release on August 13; One episode is out now; the next episode of this three-part series released Sunday, Aug. 20.

Painkiller

Streaming on Netflix

Matthew Broderick as Richard Sackler, John Rothman as Mortimer Sackler, Sam Anderson as Raymond Sackler, Lesley Faulkner as Elizabeth Sackler, Dan Fox as Arthur Sackler Jr., Michele Kaye as Denise Sackler in Painkiller.

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First Impression: Based on the 2003 book “Pain Killer” by Barry Meier, this show is a dramatized retelling of the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma’s pushing of OxyContin through advertising campaigns for the addictive substance. Along with the dramatized story of folks like Richard Sackler (played by Matthew Broderick), you also see the very realistic impact the drug had on people. The show does this not only through its episodic format but through the short testimonies you get at the beginning of each episode.

Lasting Impression: The first episode for me definitely felt like a stage-setter, getting an understanding of all the main players in the show and giving you a glimpse into red flags that will come up. Having gotten the chance to also see the second episode, the greater story being told does become a lot more clear.

You certainly get more of Taylor Kitsch and West Duchovny, who I think are the standouts of the show. They both shine a lot on the stories I think are most important in this heartbreaking story of how a drug’s marketing disinformed and took advantage of millions of people.

I also applaud the show for adding more to Uzo Aduba’s character in the show, since the first episode felt like it lacked more of her acting, character, and motivations. That is much improved in the second episode and I’m sure it’ll just be added on as you get further into the show.

Who's behind it: The show creators are Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster. Both of them have worked together in the past, having produced the biographical drama “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” and the comedic drama “Transparent.”

When and where: All six episodes are now streaming on Netflix.